When botanical technicians Hope Rankin and Peter Murray arrive at the Beal Botanical Garden every day to work on the more than 5,000 different plants found there, their duties don't always include routine upkeep of the grounds and plants.
The 5-acre garden, which is always open for public access, is occasionally the site of vandalism or theft.
The garden's curator, Frank Telewski, said garden technicians have to make repairs about once a month because of vandalism.
The amount of time and money it takes to repair the garden depends on what was stolen or damaged, Telewski said.
"Damage to our structures is probably our biggest problem because of the amount of labor involved in taking care of it," Telewski said. "Somebody coming through and kickboxing with one of our wooden garbage receptacles or ripping a bench out of the ground and throwing it in the river is just kind of senseless stuff."
Because many of the benches are there as memorial contributions and are quite old, it can cost several thousand dollars if a bench needs to be completely replaced, Telewski said.
Mechanical engineering freshman Dewayne Pickett, who was studying in the garden Monday, said he appreciates the atmosphere of the area.
"This is a great place to come to get away and study in a peaceful setting," Pickett said. "It is disappointing that people would vandalize it."
Murray, a botanical technician, pointed out that because of the inclusive nature of the garden, the site is difficult to protect.
"This is part of the campus community - people use it as part of their route from one place to another, so we can't close the place down," Murray said. "People do come here after our staff has gone home. People come here and play Frisbee or read (the plant) labels. They get use out of it."
MSU police Sgt. Florene McGlothian-Taylor said it can be difficult to track down offenders.
"There are usually not witnesses," McGlothian-Taylor said.
Telewski said theft of the vegetables and other plants that grow in the garden also occurs, although less frequently than physical damage.
He said the staff has looked into the possibility of safeguarding some of the rarest plants from theft by securing them to the ground, but he isn't sure how effective it would be.
"If somebody really wants to steal something, there isn't much that you can do in this situation to stop them," Telewski said.
Sometimes students or faculty need to harvest from the garden for research or other things, but Telewski said a permit is required to do so. Permits are available through Telewski at the Campus Planning and Administration office in Olds Hall.
Psychology sophomore Anthony Zagajewski was disappointed that vandalism was occurring in the garden.
"That type of thing shouldn't happen," Zagajewski said. "People put in a lot of hard work to keep it beautiful."
